


The Adventures of Little My

by somajesticdonki



Category: Moominvalley (Cartoon 2019), 楽しいムーミン一家 | Moomin (Anime 1990)
Genre: Adventure, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-07
Updated: 2019-06-08
Packaged: 2020-04-12 00:33:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19120942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/somajesticdonki/pseuds/somajesticdonki
Summary: After an encounter with the Hattifatteners, Little My finds herself in a new, weird place.





	1. In which Little My finds herself in a new place.

It was a stormy night in Moominvalley, and the family of Moomins, along with their many honorary family members, were hiding inside the dry and brightly lit Moominhouse. The small girl known as Little My was sitting on the backrest of the living room couch, staring out the window.  
The rest of the family was sitting at the dining room table, chatting the night away. But Little My wasn't in the mood for a chat. In fact just being in the house was driving her insane! She wanted to go outside and run through the fields and scream at the top of her lungs!!!  
But when she tried going out in the rain, Moominmamma gently dragged her back inside, saying she'll catch a cold, which would make her to go outside, even after the storm passes. Therefore, as irritated as she was, she sat at the window, swinging her legs, and tapping on the windowsill with her fingers.  
"I'm so BORED," she yelled, loud enough for the others to hear her in the dining room.  
Moominmamma stepped out and softly invited her for a snack. Little My was about to follow her back to the dining room, when something outside caught her eye. Long white creatures bobbed along the river, their big eyes glistening in the rain. More and more of them kept passing through, Little My thought they could have covered all of Moominvalley!  
"Hattifatteners! What are they doing here?" she asked Moominmamma.  
"I'm sure they're headed for that tall tree, at the top of the mountain."  
"Huh," Little My took another glance out the window, then turned to go get her snack. "What a bunch of weird guys."

Inside the dining room sat the rest of the family, with Moominpappa at the head of the table.  
"Little My, isn't it your dear sister's birthday in a few days?"  
Little My nodded. She hadn’t seen her sister in quite a while, and figured her birthday would be a good time to visit her.  
"Shall we throw a surprise party for her?" Moominmamma asked, placing a slice of cake in front of Little My.  
"She would like that," Little My answered, and started digging in. The cake was creamy with raspberry filling, putting a big smile on her face.  
However, she realized she hadn't thought of a present to get for her sister yet! And she knew the Young Mymble would be upset if she didn't receive one. Little My bit on the tip of her fork, thoughtfully.  
There is nothing her sister would like more than jewelry, but Little My didn't have nearly enough money for that! She considered stealing it, but she concluded she was better than that. Maybe she could find-  
"Little My, please don't bite on the silverware," Moominmamma reached into her purse and handed the small girl her favorite orange chew toy.  
Little My gratefully took the chew toy and bit down on it. It tasted much better than the fork, anyway.

The storm passed by the evening, and nothing could stop Little My from going outside any longer. She ran through the tall grasses of the valley, stopping by the garden to pick a few flowers, blue, yellow, and pink ones, to make herself a flower crown. She stopped by a puddle to admire her reflection for a moment, then proceeded to jump into the puddle, calling out in excitement.

Little My stopped when something had caught her eye. It was the Hattifatteners again, gathering by the river, their small boats waiting to be sailed out into the open sea.  
Little My, curious of where they were going, snuck into the growing crowd, and jumped on one of the boats. The Hattifatteners seemed to pay her no attention, although you couldn't be sure, as they could not speak.  
Once all the boats were filled, they set sail, down the river.  
The wind was blowing strong, as the cold current carried them down, towards the Lonely Mountains, and towards the sea. A single yellow leaf fell from a tree above them, and landed on top of Little My's head. It must be the beginning of autumn.  
As their journey downriver dragged on, the sky grew dark, and Little My grew impatient, when, to her surprise, the boats had stopped at the foot of a mountain. She wondered what the Hattifatteners were to do here, as it did not seem it was going to storm anymore that night. She followed them off the boats, and up the steep slope.  
It was a long trek up the mountain, and the waxing moon made itself visible among the stars in the sky. Little My couldn't see well where she was going, and she might have fallen if it weren’t for the occasional flash of electricity that came from the Hattifatteners around her.  
Finally, the Hattifatteners stopped climbing. They found a clearing between a circle of trees, gathering together. As they seemed to be all admiring something in the center, Little My pushed through the crowd to find what it was. A few stings of electricity later, she reached the middle, standing in a circle of dirt, outlined by the grass.  
"What is this supposed to be!" she asked the white creatures, but as expected, they did not respond. Instead they moved in waves, back and forth, back and forth, until Little My was surrounded by an electric current.  
Then a bolt of light shot out from under her and into the sky, and where the light disappeared, formed a hole in the sky!  
Little My stared at it in awe. Her hair stood on edge with the electricity around her, and she felt chills run up her back. The hole seemed to be alive, swirling in circles, growing, and growing! But what took the Little Mymble a moment to realize, is that it wasn't just growing, it was coming closer, soon to swallow her whole. She tried to move away, but the crowd of Hattifatteners blocked her way out. As the hole was right above her, she covered her eyes at the bright light escaping it.

When Little My opened her eyes again, she was no longer on the mountain. She was on a field of wild grasses, surrounded by the Hattifatteners. There was what looked like a dark river in the distance, although because of the lack of light, Little My couldn't be sure.  
"Let me through, you weird lollipops," she demanded, as she tried to push through them. She had no clue where she was, but she wasn't about to wait around for someone to come and save her. Her goal was the river - surely that will lead to something.  
Once she made it past the Hattifatteners, she pushed through the grass, which thankfully only reached up to her waist, allowing her to see what was ahead of her. The closer she got to the river, however, the less sure she was that's what it was. It was too still. Too black.  
Then she saw two bright lights coming from one side of the "river". She ran up closer to it to see what it is. The blackness was a hard, solid ground, rough to the touch. The lights came closer, and as they passed her with horrifying speed and noise, she recognised it to be some sort of carriage. Except it was moving by itself. She soon realized it was her first time seeing a car in real life, and there was only one thing on her mind from that point on. She wanted to ride one.  
To her luck another car was coming soon after. Little My ran to the middle of the road, ready to jump on top, but as the driver saw her, they screeched to a stop. She took that moment to climb on top of the roof.  
The driver, who she could now see was a young Mumrik boy, came out of the car and stared at her in bewilderment.  
"What are you doing, small Mymble? Are you lost?"  
"I wanna ride the car!" she jumped in through the open car door and sat in the driver's seat. It was disappointing, however, as she was too small to see over the steering wheel.  
The Mumrik grabbed her by the sides and pulled her out of the car. "You can't drive my car. But if you need a ride, I can help you out."  
"Take me to your house."  
"Why do you want to go to my house?"  
"I'm hungry. You have food, right?"  
The Mumrik considered his choices, then agreed. "Okay. But I can't let you stay at my house. After you eat, you have to leave."  
"Fine."  
Little My climbed into the car once more and jumped over to the passenger seat. The Mumrik sat down at the driver's seat and closed the door. He made sure both of their seatbelts were fastened, then put the car in drive once more.  
"I'm Lika Poika. What is your name?"  
"I'm Little My."  
He laughed. "The name suits you."  
Little My glared at him and crossed her arms.  
"What do you like to eat?"  
"Moominmamma makes the best pancakes. Especially with her special raspberry juice."  
"Pancakes? Sounds easy enough."  
"Have you ever tried to make them? It's not as simple as it looks, you know."  
"No, but I've seen it done. It can't be too hard."  
"Whatever you say, just don't blame me if you burn the house down."  
Lika Poika laughed, snorting as he did.  
Little My stood up in her seat and looked out the passenger window. Everything was moving by so quickly!  
"Can you open the window?"  
"Sure, just don't fall out."  
The window rolled down and Little My stuck her head out of the car. The wind was blowing so strongly in her face, that she could barely keep her eyes open.  
"Whoohooo!!!!" she cheered, enjoying the sheer excitement of the adventure.

An hour had passed and as Little My had a long, adventurous night, she had fallen asleep in the passenger seat. Lika Poika had turned on a radio station, playing soft piano music, which he seemed to enjoy a lot, as he was quietly humming along.  
After driving through winding paths inside a forest, Lika Poika parked the car in front of a small cottage house.  
He gently shook Little My awake. "Little My," he said softly, "we're here."  
Little My slowly opened her eyes and grumbled, "Finally! I'm starving."  
Lika Poika exited the car and opened the door on the passenger side.  
"Just one thing," he looked at her cautiously and she narrowed her eyes. "Don't make any noise when we go in. If my aunt hears you, she'll kill both me AND you."  
"I'm not afraid of an old lady," Little My retorted, jumping out of the car.  
"Please, just… stay quiet."  
Little My glared at him, but didn't answer. Lika Poika took that as a sign that she understood, and went to unlock the front door of the house. It creaked open quietly, and Lika Poika turned on the light.  
It was a small, dimly lit living room, complete with an old couch, and the biggest television Little My had ever seen. She ran over to it and stared at her reflection in the blank screen. The flowers she wore on her head were all wilted, and as she touched them, the dying petals fell to the floor.  
Lika Poika tapped her on the shoulder and gestured for her to follow him.  
He led her to the kitchen, where he silently took a pot of soup out of the refrigerator.  
“I thought you were gonna make pancakes,” Little My whispered, but he only shook his head in response. He placed the pot on the dining room table, and took two bowls out of a cupboard. Little My sat down at the table, as he poured the soup into the bowls and handed her a spoon.  
She put a spoonful in her mouth, but the taste of the cold soup made her cringe. Lika Poika sat in front of her, and quietly started eating. He looked serious, very different from the mumrik she saw back on the road.  
With a deep sigh, Little My finished her soup, which she found to be the least satisfying meal she’s ever eaten. Lika Poika finished as well, and started cleaning up the dishes. Little My looked around the kitchen. It was kept very clean, and nicely decorated with paintings of what My concluded was Lika Poika’s family members.   
When the mumrik finished cleaning the dishes, he grabbed Little My’s hand and walked her over to the door. He opened it, and gently nudged her outside. Little My remembered that he said that she can’t stay at the house, but the it didn’t feel good to be suddenly forced out.  
The door closed behind her and she stuck out her tongue in its direction.  
Irritated and tired, Little My started walking down the dirt road that led back through the forest. She didn’t walk far when she decided to lie down under a tree and rest. She closed her eyes, and before she knew it, she was asleep.


	2. In which Little My looks for a way home.

Little My was awoken by the sound of snapping branched. She lifted her head and looked around her. The sun was already rising, its light trickling in through the trees. The shadows were long, and the small Mymble had trouble making out what was hiding in them.  
She stood up, grabbing a nearby stick to use as a weapon. "Who's there?!" she called.  
"Oh, it IS you, Tiny My!" a small creature came out from the bushes and trotted over to her, tripping over twigs along the way.  
"Who are you calling tiny?!" she questioned, her stick ready to hit if needed.  
"Oh I apologize, Your Greatness, for I have been impolite!" the creature bowed down in apology.  
Little My narrowed her eyes at it. "Who are you?"  
"My name is Pikku Lapsi! I am a big follower of yours, I am!" The little creature's tail jumped straight up, excited to be acknowledged.  
"How do you know of me?"  
Pikku Lapsi chuckled. "We all know of you, of course!"  
"That doesn't answer my question."  
The little creature pulls out a rectangular device from his sweater pocket, and tapped at it a few times, before showing it to Little My.  
It was a wanted poster, with someone who looked just like her, except for the color of her clothes, as her tunic was blue, with a green bow tied around her neck.  
"We all know about your escape! It's all over the news!"  
Little My was impressed. Whoever this girl was, she was in a lot of trouble, and yet it seemed she had admirers!  
"Have you been in hiding? You needn't worry, I shall never turn you in!"  
"Look here, little guy, I don't know who this girl is, but I am not her."  
"Ah! Oh why, of course!" Pikku Lapsi winked at her. "And the red tunic suits you quite well, I must say."  
Little My rolled her eyes. Then she felt her stomach rumble. Last night's meal wasn't quite filling, and she definitely needed breakfast.  
"If you're a fan of this girl, why don't you go find her something to eat. She must be starving."  
"Oh, what a splendid idea! I shall go find you something at once!" And so the little creature ran back into the bushes.  
The Little Mymble sat down on the ground, stabbing her stick into the dirt. Her stomach rumbled once more.  
If this girl (What did the creature call her? Tiny My?) did look just like her, Little My would have to be careful. She did not want to be put in jail in this foreign land, as she was planning to find a way home. As fun as adventuring was, she missed the warmth of her bed, and Moominmamma's delicious food. She grit her teeth. She definitely missed her chew toy.  
She picked up a piece of park from the ground and bit down on in. She quickly spit it out with a "Bleh!", as the bark tasted like dirt.  
Then Pikku Lapsi returned, holding something behind his back.  
"I brought you food!" he said, excitedly revealing a leaf with a beetle walking on it.  
It was no secret Little My wasn't very excited about this meal. She stood up and, to the small creature's disappointment, said, "I'll find something myself."

The small Mymble walked through the first, often checking to see if anyone was following her. To her satisfaction, the creature decided not to come along.  
She looked at the trees and bushes, hoping for some sort of edible fruit, but she walked for an hour before she stumbled onto something she was willing to eat.  
There was a tree in the middle of a clearing, bearing red leaves and small red fruit.  
"Cherries!" Little My exclaimed, and started climbing her way up in the tree. She sat on one of the branches, and started picking the little fruits (although to Little My, they were about the size of her palm).  
As she gathered more and more of them, one slipped out of her hand and fell on the ground, letting out a soft "Ow!"  
"Who's there?!" Little My called. She let of her alertness drop as she was enamoured by the food, and could have let someone sneak up on her.  
But the voice came from the ground where the cherry fell. "Don't drop me so far down! It hurts!"  
The Mymble looked down at the ground, and her eyes widened. It was the cherry. The cherry was speaking to her.  
"How can you talk? You're just fruit."  
"Everything is alive, you know! And those are my friends you're holding in my arms!"  
Little My looked at the cherries in her hands, and, sure enough, they all had small faces that she was just barely able to make out.  
"Don't eat me!" One of them cried.  
Little My's stomach grumbled loudly.  
"But I'm hungry. And you're fruit, you shouldn't be talking in the first place!"  
Convinced that the hunger was making her imagine the weird sentient cherries, she popped one in her mouth.  
Then the voices of the fruits grew loud, and almost distorted, as they screamed, "YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS!! YOU WILL PAY!!"  
Little My felt a weird sensation in her mouth, as if something was moving around inside, and even worse, growing.  
She spit the cherry out onto the ground, and saw as branches grew out from the fruit. They grew quickly, wrapping around the cherry tree, and climbing their way up to her. Little My quickly climbed her way to the longest branch of the tree, and jumped off, quickly running off into the forest.

After running for about 10 minutes, Little My seemed to lose the sentient tree far behind her. She sat down under what she hoped was a normal, non-talking tree, and closed her eyes.  
She was very hungry. She couldn't stand to keep walking and searching. Maybe a nap will help, she thought.  
Just then, a smell drifted over to her. It smelled warm and tasty, and at the thought of a warm soup her eyes shot open.  
There was a movement in the distance. Little My watched it, ready to jump up and fight, if needed.  
Then she recognized the figure of the person, coming closer to her. It was Lika Poika!  
"Little My!" he called, jogging over to her, carrying a basket in one hand. "I was hoping I'd find you!"  
Little My stood up, smelling the air. "You have food."  
He chuckled. "I do! I brought you some."  
He opened up his basket and pulled out a container of soup. Little My almost started drooling at the thought of finally having a meal.  
"It's still warm, so I hope you'll like it," he said, passing the container to her, then handing her a spoon.  
She took it without a word, and opened the container. The sweet smell of warm soup filled her nostrils, and she did not wait any longer to dig in.  
Lika Poika watched her with a smile, but Little My was too busy eating to notice. When she finished, he asked her, "What are you doing out here all alone?"  
"I'll have you know I'm perfectly allowed to go out by myself."  
A small laugh escaped his mouth. "That I'm sure of, but you seem to not have been eating well. Also judging by the smell, I don't think you've taken a shower last night…"  
Little My crossed her arms. "That's rude."  
"What I'm trying to say is," he scratched the back of his head. "Do you have a place to go home to?"  
"I do."  
"Then how come you're not going back?"  
"That's none of your business."  
Lika Poika leaned forward, his voice low. "You're Tiny My, aren't you?"  
Little My got angry. She did not like being mistaken for someone else. "No I'm not!"  
"That sounds like something Tiny My would say."  
“Well my name is Little My, not Tiny My, so don’t you call me that too.”  
“Too? Have you met someone else?”  
“Some little one named Pikku Lapsi.”  
“Never heard of them.”  
Little My shrugged. Now that her stomach was full, she wanted to get up and go. She didn’t want to be reliant on Lika Poika for food, so she had to find her way home.  
“Do you know about the Hattifatteners?”  
“Oh, yes, I’ve seen them in the fields. Why do you ask?”  
“It’s their fault I’m here.”  
“Are you trying to get home, then?”  
Little My nodded. She felt like she was admitting a weakness, but she could definitely use his help.  
She told Lika Poika about the encounter with the Hattifatteners on the mountain. She talked about the light she remembers seeing, and how suddenly she appeared on the field. The mumrik pondered on the topic for a moment.  
“We never really knew what it is the Hattifatteners do… Do you think they could create enough of a force to bend space itself?”  
Little My’s brain was burning. Thinking hard was not one of her favorite things to do.  
“Take me back to the field!” She said, standing up. “If I can find them again, they could take me back!”  
“Do you think they’re still there?”  
“Do you have any other ideas, smartypants?” She tapped her foot impatiently.  
Lika Poika chuckled. “Alright, I’ll do as you say, boss!”

The drive back to the field felt much longer than the drive to Lika Poika’s house. Even with her head sticking out the window, Little My wasn’t quite satisfied.  
“Let me drive!” she said to Lika Poika, who shook his head.  
“I can’t let you do that.”  
“Why not?”  
“You don’t have a license. Besides, you don’t know where to go.”  
“Then tell me where to go!” She jumped into his lap, and grabbed hold of the wheel. She wanted to go faster, but she could not reach the gas pedal.  
Lika Poika was amused. He smiled at her and let go of the wheel. “Just keep going straight and don’t drive off the road.”  
It wasn’t long before Little My attempted her first turn, and almost crashed the car into a lamp post. After that, Lika Poika no longer let her drive.

They arrived at the field where they met about an hour later, and Lika Poika parked on the side of the road. Little My jumped out of the car window and ran out into the field. There were no Hattifatteners in sight. She kicked the dirt in front of her in frustration.  
Lika Poika looked up at the sky. It was getting dark, as gray clouds gathered above the field.  
“They might still come,” he said. “Let’s wait here.”  
“I’m sick of waiting!” Little My yelled. She wanted to run, and scream, and fight! She couldn’t stand just sitting still anymore.  
And so with that, she ran off into the field, the grasses scratching at her knees. Like Poika ran after her, but quickly ran out of steam.  
“Little My! Where are you going?”  
“Ahead!”  
But she didn’t go ahead much further, as she tripped on a root and fell. She scraped her knee, and it started bleeding. Lika Poika caught up to her and kneeled down next to her.  
“Are you hurt?”  
“No.”  
His eyes widened as he saw her knee. “But you’re bleeding!”  
“A little bit of blood doesn’t scare me,” she said, standing back up.  
There was a crackle of electricity in the air. In the distance, a large group of Hattifatteners, maybe a thousand of them, were coming towards them.  
The two children observed them as they came.  
The long, white creatures gathered around a single tree in the middle of the field. What happened next was no news to Little My, but Lika Poika watched in awe, as the electricity formed a hole in the sky.  
Little My ran over towards the tree. “Take me home, you white blobs!”  
There was a flash of light, and she was no longer in the field.


	3. In which Little My dreams, and starts her journey back to the other dimension

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's a little shorter than the other two but i felt it was a good place to stop! and a big thank you to everyone who's been reading this story <3

Little My appeared back on top of the mountain. It was late afternoon and the sun was setting to the west. A carpet of leaves lay at her feet, in orange, red, and yellow colors.  
As soon as the Mymble realized where she was, she started running. She's been gone all night, Moominmamma must be worried! It was a long way back home, and as she ran she felt sweat roll down her skin. She ran up along the river, through the forest, until she finally arrived by the bridge, on the path to Moominhouse.  
She stopped at the bridge to catch her breath. She expected Moomintroll to come running out of the house, to greet her, and calling the rest of the family to welcome her back. But nobody came.  
Little My walked up to the house and jumped on the window. There was no one in the drawing room, so she went inside and searched every room in the house, but with no luck.  
"Good, I get to take Moomintroll's room for myself," she said, as she jumped on his bed. The bed was nice and bouncy and she waved her arms and spun around as she jumped, and jumped.  
A few minutes passed, until she got tired and lied down on the bed, wondering where everyone went. She closed her eyes, and her thoughts soon drifted off, far away into a dreamland of her own.

Lika Poika stood in front of her, autumn leaves sticking out of his curly hair. "They won't be waiting for you," he said. "They don't care enough."  
Then the Mumrik's shape changed, into someone smaller, someone that looked just like Little My, except her tunic was blue and the bow around her neck was green. She held out her hand to her with a grin on her face.  
"Little My!" came a voice. "Little My!"

The sleeping girl was awoken by the sound of Moomintroll's voice. "Little My, you're back!"  
She sat up in the bed, stretching her arms. Before she fell asleep she probably would have jumped to hug Moomintroll, but now she was just angry at her dream. How dare that Mumrik tell her something like that.  
"Where have you been?!" she demanded.  
"I should be asking you that! We've been looking for you!"  
"That's none of your business."  
He patted her head, but she swatted his paw away. "Well, I'm glad you're safe."  
"You should have more trust in me, Moomintroll."  
"Now, come on, Mamma's making supper! You must be hungry after being out all night!" He sniffed the air. "And you might want to take a shower."  
"Do you wanna smell my stinky foot?" Little My took off one of her shoes.  
"Uh, no thanks," Moomintroll turned to exit the room, and Little My jumped on his shoulders, sticking her shoeless foot in his face. "Get off me!" he snapped.  
Little My giggled, a loud snort escaping her mouth. "Not happening, big guy!" Bugging her friend always put her in a better mood.  
She jumped off of him, sliding her shoe back on, and ran downstairs to greet the rest of the kids.

The family sat down at the table for supper, each of them expressing their relief when they saw Little My. The most expressive of all was Sniff, as he almost cried seeing her. Little My wondered if they were tears of happiness or fear.  
She wasn't hungry after eating Lika Poika's soup earlier, but she couldn't resist it when Moominmamma placed a plate of her special pancakes in front of her. She dug in happily. It tasted like home.

The next day, after a good night's sleep and a hearty breakfast, Little My was ready to set off on another adventure, carrying a backpack full of snacks, packed by none other than Moominmamma. When Moomintroll asked her where she's going, she said "to look for the Hattifatteners," and when he asked why, she told him it's none of his business.  
She went for the beach, where she decided to set sail. There were clouds gathering in the distance, and she was sure that's where the Hattifatteners would be.  
As she was about to sail off, the rest of the kids came running behind her.  
"Little My! We're coming with you!" Snorkmaiden called.  
"No you're not!" Little My called back, pushing the boat off the shore. "I'll see you tomorrow! Probably."  
As the other children called out their words of protest, she just smiled and waved at them.

And so she sailed off into the sea, the wind blowing her westward. She truly enjoyed the smell of the water, as it gave her the feeling of truly being on an expedition into the unknown, and Little My quite liked the challenge. As the ship kept sailing forward, she got bored, and starting singing tunes to herself. The classic, "All Small Beasts Should Have Bows in Their Tails," never got old, or so she thought, until she sang through the song for the 10th time.  
The wind had stopped, and the waves have calmed. With nothing else to do, Little My took a sandwich out of her backpack and ate it quickly. Still quite bored, she ate an apple as well. And some cookies. And drank all of her raspberry juice.  
Full to the brim, she lied down on the boat and stared at the sky. What a slow day this was. She wondered if she could find the Hattifatteners in time for the hole in the sky to open. She wondered if she could find Lika Poika again. But most of all, she wanted to find Tiny My, and find out who she really is.  
Soon, as she pondered about this, her consciousness escaped from her.

She dreamt of Lika Poika again. But this time it was a peaceful dream. After a cup of warm soup, they enjoyed looking at the clear sky together.

But when she woke up, the sky was no longer clear. She was nearing the island, where a large storm was forming. Little My stood up and started paddling towards the shore. She was about ready to get off this boat and continue her adventure.  
Then, she spotted them in the distance - Hattifattener boats! This gave her more energy and she paddled faster, until the finally reached the rocky beach of the island. The Hattifatteners were gathering around her, coming off their boats in odd numbers, and heading towards the forested area head of them. Little My grabbed her backpack and jumped off her boat, following them through the trees. The trees were covered in colorful leaves, but the small Mymble had no time to admire them. The Hattifatteners moved quickly today, quicker than usual, creating a long stream of white mass, that practically pushed Little My on ahead.  
They reached the top of a hill, where, in a clearing, stood a tall blue pole with some sort of device attached to it. Little My recognized this as the barometer she had seen the last time she and her friends came to this island.  
The dark clouds were right above them at this point, and lightning threatened to strike at any moment. Little My pushed her way through the crowd of Hattifatteners, who were particularly electric that day. She watched the sky, and when lightning did strike the pole, that now-familiar hole appeared in the sky.  
"Take me away, little guys!" she called.

With another flash of light, Little My once again appeared on the field. The clouds which were above her head quickly dissipated, and the Hattifatteners scattered around, going off to who-knows-where. As Little My didn’t know which way Lika Poika’s house was, she decided to follow the Hattifatteners instead.  
It was long trek through the field, which was eerily quiet. Out of sheer boredom, the small Mymble held her hands on the sides of her chest and wiggled them around, imitating the movements of the Hattifatteners. However, as the Hattifatteners do, they were too focused on their path to notice her, and showed no reaction. Little My sighed and kicked the dirt on the ground. “You guys are no fun.”  
As they were nearing what looked like a pear tree, Little My ran towards it to harvest some fruit before she continued her journey, but her foot got caught on a root.  
“Stupid plant,” she tried to pull her foot out, but the root grew into a stem, and the stem wrapped tightly around her leg. “Let me go!”  
There was a soft hum of voices coming from the tree. “We know what you did,” they said, “You will pay!”  
Little My bent down and bit the plant at the stem, momentarily freeing her leg, bus soon another one grew in its place, taking hold of her before she could escape.  
Suddenly a cold wind blew from beyond the tree. The Hattifatteners seemed to move faster than usual, as if they were trying to escape it. Then Little My saw a dark shadow in the distance. She quickly recognized the creature to be none other than the Groke, who brought the cold with her wherever she went.  
The stems of the plant kept growing around Little My’s legs, and she could not escape. She tugged and tugged, and once more tried biting the stems off, but it was no use. In front of her the Groke kept approaching, and she could see the life draining from the pear tree. Little My stared at her in horror. If only she could make her escape before the cold reached her.  
And then it did. The roots of the plants froze, and Little My snapped them with a quick motion of her leg. She looked up to find the Groke standing in front of her, simply staring back at her.  
“Uh, thanks,” Little My said, backing away.  
The Groke looked down, then turned around and once more left in the other direction.


	4. In which Little My goes to jail and meets a girl

Little My had walked for hours, the contents of her backpack all gone. The fields felt neverending during that time, until she spotted tall structures in the distance. Tall buildings, even bigger than the Lonely Mountains! They reached high up into the sky, and she wished she could be at the top of the tallest one, staring down at the world. She picked up her pace, hoping to reach them before sundown.  
But by the time she reached them, the sun had long set. The streets between the buildings were lit by street lamps and neon signs on the building, unlike anything she had ever seen before. The streets were crowded, which limited her movements, to her irritation. In a big place this big, she was sure to find a place to eat something and stay for the night.  
Everything was loud in this place. The cars were speeding past quickly, and as she has never seen the colorful lights hanging above the streets, she almost got hit by a car when she tried to cross the street. She hissed at the car driver, jumping on top of the vehicle, and landing on the other side of the road.  
People talked loudly, and tripped over her, stepping on her heels and toes many every few seconds. "GET OUT OF MY WAY!" she screamed at them. Her senses felt overwhelmed, and it felt like everyone and everything was looming over her. She pretended there were no tears forming in her eyes as she kept pushing forward, screaming at anyone that annoyed her.  
A Hemulen officer approached her. "Young Mymble," she said, "I have been informed that you have been causing a ruckus in our neighborhood. I will have to remove you from this area." The officer grabbed her by her hand, but Little My did not have the patience to deal with this right now. She bit the woman's wrist and jumped past her.  
"Stop right there!" The officer called, but Little My kept running. There was nothing more she wanted than to get out of that place, but she didn't want to do that at the hands of an officer.  
But as the crowd was thick, and people around them noticed she was being chased, many of them stopped walking to watch, and consequently blocked her way.  
The Hemulen caught up with her and grabbed her from the back, to avoid getting bitten again. "You're coming with me."  
Little My was furious and tried to fight, but the officer's grip was too strong. She put her in the backseat of a police car, and drove off, turning the sirens on.  
Little My couldn't stand the sound of the sirens. It brought a strong pain in her body that she could not explain. She gritted her teeth, trying not to cry.  
"What are you doing out here all by yourself? Where are your parents?"  
She didn't answer. She could barely hear the words being spoken to her, and she definitely couldn't answer. She started throwing a tantrum, screaming, and trying to rip the seatbelt off of her chest.  
The officer said something into a small gray device, and soon they pulled up at the police station.  
A few more Hemulen officers were waiting for them at the entrance, grabbing hold of Little My, and dragging her into the station, where they threw her into a jail cell.  
Little My growled at them. She was angry at the officers, and she was angry at herself for getting caught like that.  
The officers whispered among each other, until one exclaimed, "We've caught Tiny My!"  
"I'm not Tiny My!!"  
"The pictures don't lie, Tiny Mymble," the female officer that brought her here showed her a large image of the girl in the blue tunic and green ribbon around her neck. "A change of clothes won't fool a Hemulen."  
And with that the three officers left the room, talking to each other excitedly.  
Little My wondered who these jail cells were meant to hold, because they could definitely not hold her (or Tiny My, she assumed), as she squeezed between the bars when the officers were gone. She looked around the room for an exit, and spotted an open window on the back wall. She jumped onto a chair, then a desk, and finally reached the window.  
At that moment an officer opened the door, holding someone by their arm, but who it was she couldn't see, as the only visible part of them were their clothes.  
The officer looked at the empty cell, then at Little My and yelled, "Tiny My is getting away!"  
He dropped the person to the ground and tried to catch her, but she jumped off his head and ran past him, towards the small person, who was slowly standing up from the floor. She grabbed their sleeve and ran out the door. More officers threw themselves onto the two of them, and one of them caught the invisible person, but she sunk her teeth into her hand. The officer let go of the child, and together they ran out the door of the police station.  
It was now late at night, and there were very few people around, allowing the two to quickly escape to an alley, hiding behind a large trash bin.  
Policemen and women ran out of the station, and past they alley without noticing the two.  
The two children sat down, waiting for a few minutes to pass, before they started moving again.  
They moved quickly around the city, until they reached the edge of a forest. Once they were deep into the forest they decided to stop.  
The invisible child sat on the ground and started crying quietly. Little My knew that them being invisible meant they were abused in some sort of way, but she wasn't good at making people feel better.  
"Why are you crying?" she asked.  
There was no answer.  
"Why did they try to throw you in the slammer?"  
"I tried to steal a loaf of bread," they answered, in a quiet voice, that somehow felt familiar to Little My.  
"And you got caught?"  
"Yes."  
"Do you want me to teach you how to steal things better?"  
"I don't want to steal!"  
"But you gotta eat something."  
Silence.  
"What's your name?" she asked.  
"It's me, Little My! I'm Lika Poika!"  
"Lika Poika? Don't you have food at home?"  
"...I don't have a home anymore."  
"Then come back to Moominvalley with me! I'm sure Moominmamma wouldn't mind!"  
She watched as the tips of the boy's fingers became visible.  
"Thank you…" he said quietly.  
"Let's go back to that field. The Hattifatteners will take us back."  
Lika Poika stood up, dusting off his tunic. He knew the way back to the field, he said, but the two decided to rest for the night.  
They found a spot to rest under a tree, covering themselves with leaves from the chilly wind.  
Little My was almost asleep, when she heard Lika Poika ask, "What is it like being a girl?"  
She mumbled, "it's just being myself."  
"I want to be a girl too."  
"Then be one."  
"B-But my aunt says I can't be a girl!" he protested.  
"Who cares what she says. If you say you're a girl, then you are one."  
"Really?"  
"Yeah, that's how I did it. Just say you're a girl."  
Lika Poika took a deep breath, and quietly said, "I'm a girl."  
"Louder! I can't hear you!"  
"I'M A GIRL!!" she yelled, the outlines of her face becoming visible.  
"THAT'S THE SPIRIT!" A grin appeared on Little My's face. "So what's your name?"  
"My name?"  
"Do you like your name?"  
"...No. I can change it?"  
"Obviously. You decide who you are."  
Lika Poika nodded. "I will think about it," she said.  
And so the two girls decided they should get their rest, as they had a long journey home ahead of them.


End file.
